Review of Swing Kids (1993) by Pete K — 27 Dec 2011
People do not seem to realise that this IS a historically accurate film, if they had made it any other way it would have not done justice to these genuine people who really existed and really fought the evils of nazism (swing music was the rock n roll of the day and because of its American, often Black roots, the Nazis despised it).
The ending of the film is very very poignant if you know anything about the history of the Third Reich. Do yourself a favour and read some history before claiming this is a 'boring' or 'typical' story.
Whilst the characters are fictional the whole feel of the film is very genuine and representative of the difficult decisions people had to make to survive. I actually found it to be a very moving film, and I am always 'that guy' who picks up on any historical inaccuracies; this one was genuinely fantastic, I would give it 8/10 for truly capturing the feel of Hamburg (one of the least 'nazified' cities in Germany at the time) just after the annexation of Austria and the Sudetenland and just prior to the invasion of Poland.
Don't watch if you only like ridiculous Hollywood action war movies full of explosions. Do watch if you like beautiful movies brimming with emotion, seething with anger at a seemingly unbeatable foe that has become the norm and overall celebrating the immense courage and spirit of humanity even in the face of such evil.
The Swing Youth need to be remembered, Other reviewers do not seem to realise that this wasn't a ridiculous little organisation that didn't mean anything. Swing Kids would be sent to concentration camps or simply executed as early as 1937, and were almost always sent to death camps once the war started, yet they carried on fighting the good fight.
Swing Heil!!!
This review of Swing Kids (1993) was written by Pete K on 27 Dec 2011.
Swing Kids has generally received positive reviews.
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